Junior Chris Cutrone (Levittown/Island Trees HS) threw a complete game shutout as the St. Joseph’s College baseball team split a doubleheader with SUNYIT, dropping a 7-6 decision in game one before earning a 1-0 triumph in the second game on Sunday afternoon at Baseball Heaven.

The shutout win in game two is the first 1-0 shutout victory in the program’s seven-year history.

St. Joseph’s (7-6) remains over .500 on the season and has won six of their last eight games, while SUNYIT (5-8) has dropped four of their last five ball games.

The first game of the day saw the Bears jump out to an early 3-1 lead after two innings of play, helped by a Cutrone two-RBI single and a Francis Rapp (Oceanside/Baldwin) RBI single up the middle. After surrendering an unearned run in the first, St. Joseph’s starter Donny Pagano (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter’s) settled in and pitched three shutout innings.

The Bears were not able to add onto their lead as Wildcats starter Jeff Albright put up two consecutive scoreless innings going into the fifth. SUNYIT took the lead for good with a six-run fifth to take a 7-3 lead, chasing Pagano with two outs in the frame.

A pitcher’s duel broke out between Cutrone and Wildcats starter Joseph Redmond in game two. The two pitchers went toe-to-toe for the entire game, putting up zeroes on the scoreboard .

The two teams combined for only 12 hits in the game, but shaky SUNYIT defensive play – the Wildcats committing five miscues in the nightcap – came back to haunt them as St. Joseph’s was able to break through with the lone run of the game in the sixth on a pair of errors.

Cutrone went the distance scattering seven hits and one walk, while striking out three to improve to 2-1 on the mound this year.

St. Joseph’s travels to SUNY Maritime for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 29, at 11 a.m.